How a Uyghur founder immigrated to US and built a startup now used by 97,000+ engineers

San Francisco — Abdulla Ababakre, a San Francisco–based technology entrepreneur, has built a career centered on developing practical software tools for engineers. His latest company, Interview Coder, provides structured technical interview preparation software that has been used by tens of thousands of developers worldwide.

Ababakre’s path into technology began during his university years, where he focused on independently building programming skills and gaining hands-on experience beyond the classroom. Rather than pursuing a traditional career route, he concentrated on practical problem-solving, interview readiness, and early product development, an approach that later translated into professional opportunities and startup ventures.

After graduating, Ababakre relocated to San Francisco to pursue entrepreneurship full time. During this period, he worked on multiple early-stage software products, collaborated with other founders, and gained experience in product iteration, fundraising, and user-driven development.

Turning Points: Tech Interviews and Entrepreneurship

After gaining programming skills, Abdulla Ababakre aimed for top tech jobs instead of a traditional “safe” career. He focused solely on interview prep and networking, even at the expense of grades or civil-service exams, and soon landed offers from major firms. By his fourth year he shifted fully into startups: building prototype products, organizing a campus startup studio, and pitching to investors. His relentless hustle paid off when he secured seed funding (reportedly even from a former Fortune-500 executive) to develop his ideas. Soon after, Abdulla Ababakre moved to San Francisco to follow the startup path. He endured lean times, working odd jobs and even sleeping in his car to keep iterating on new products.

Key early milestones:

• Chinese university (Year 1): Defied campus rules by installing a VPN, unlocking global coding tutorials despite strict censorship.
• Corporate prep (Year 2): Dropped other pursuits to prepare intensively for interviews at giants like Tencent and Alibaba, ultimately securing offers.
• Startup push (Years 3–4): Launched multiple solo products and a student startup studio; raised seed funding (from notable backers, including a Fortune 500 CFO) to turn ideas into reality.
• Move to Silicon Valley (Post-grad): Relocated to San Francisco, endured hardship, and continued building software tools with AI.

Launching Interview Coder: An AI Interview Assistant

In 2025, Ababakre became CEO of Interview Coder, a desktop application designed to support engineers preparing for technical interviews. The software focuses on helping users practice coding problems, understand common interview formats, and improve technical communication through guided explanations and structured workflows.

In December 2025, Interview Coder released version 2.0, which introduced usability enhancements and expanded practice features based on user feedback collected throughout the year.

Key enhancements in Interview Coder 2.0:

• Live Audio Transcription: Captures and transcribes the interviewer’s spoken prompts so the AI can respond in real time.
• Discreet Interface Tools: 20+ system-level stealth features (invisible overlays, click-through mode, hidden icons, etc.) keep the AI tool completely hidden during a live session.
• Real-Time Coding Guidance: AI-assisted hints, explanations, and bug fixes appear as the candidate writes code, minimizing distraction and maximizing support.
• One-Time License Model: The software is sold via a lifetime-access license ($799 for full access) rather than a recurring subscription.

“Our focus has been on reducing friction in interview preparation and helping engineers practice more effectively,” said Abdulla Ababakre, CEO of Interview Coder. “Version 2.0 reflects what users told us they needed to feel more confident going into technical interviews.”

Interview Coder is offered under a one-time license model, with trial access available for new users.

Continued Growth and Future Focus

InterviewCoder’s early results suggest strong demand. The company reports that over 97,000 users worldwide have downloaded the tool. Of those, more than 41,000 candidates who used it in 2025 secured job offers, which together represented over $110 million in new annual compensation. A free trial is available for new users, but the paid lifetime license unlocks all features and unlimited use.

In addition to Interview Coder, Abdulla Ababakre has co-founded other software ventures, including NinjaTools, an AI-powered creative platform, and Viral Product Lab, a product experimentation studio. Across these projects, his work emphasizes rapid iteration, focused execution, and user-centered design.Abdulla Ababakre continues to lead Interview Coder from San Francisco, working with a distributed team of engineers and collaborators.

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